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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23143630">And then the world didn't end</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/down/pseuds/down'>down</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Scenes from a long recovery [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Magic Knight Rayearth</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Multi, Pre-OT3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-03-14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-03-14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-01 09:49:07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,155</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23143630</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/down/pseuds/down</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Some things take time. Eagle’s recovery is going to be one of them.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Scenes from a long recovery [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/880152</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>15</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>And then the world didn't end</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“It will take time.”</p><p> Lantis waited as the master healer pulled the sheets up over Eagle again, smoothing them neatly with one swift action, before he spoke. “How long, would you say?”</p><p> Miura shook her head at him, and patted him on the arm. “<em>Time</em>. As long as it takes. Cephiro is directing the process, not any of us; it’s not a constant thing we can measure and estimate for you. The most I can say is I don’t expect him to wake this month, nor the next. Beyond that…”</p><p> Swallowing, Lantis sat in the chair he’d pulled up beside the bed days ago. He and Geo had been taking it in turns to sit with Eagle over the last week; Geo was currently slumped on the couch by the window while Lantis took his turn, but soon that would have to change. The NSX would be travelling back to Autozam with a handful of Cephiran mages on board, to take a look at the atmosphere and decide what, if anything, could be done to help.</p><p> It looked like she would be making the trip without Eagle.</p><p> Miura patted him on the shoulder, now that he was low enough she could do so. (Something Eagle would no doubt have found amusing; the healer was small and curvy and mostly cheerful, but also slightly terrifying. She treated all her patients the same – and treated everyone she came across as a potential patient. It made her one of the few people in Cephiro who weren’t treating Lantis with suspicion.) “Realistically, it could easily be a year or more before he wakes. The coma shouldn’t be so deep for all of that, of course; hopefully in a while we will be able to communicate with him, even if he can’t- shouldn’t- wake up. But the damage is extensive. To heal it properly, and restore his quality of life…”</p><p> “I understand.” Lantis took Eagle’s hand in his, bowing his head. “…At least he has time to recover, now.”</p><p> “Yes. Actually, I’ll want to see his second about that, before they leave.” Miura packed her things away – she barely bothered with the usual tools of a healer, her spells strong enough she didn’t need to channel them through any diagnostic wand, but she still carried them about as a matter of course. Lantis was going to ask why, one of these days. “Guru Clef came to talk to me about the problems Autozam’s having with this fatigue illness, and extending our aid to others affected like this one here. I think your friend may have spoken to him about it – anyway, I want to talk to him about it before they go back. If you could pass the message on?”</p><p> “Of course.” Lantis bowed his head to her then, knowing something of what it would mean to Autozam, if they could help with this as well as the ruin of the land. “Thank you.”</p><p> Miura waved the thanks away. “I took a vow to help people, it’s my job. And now I’d best get on and do it- I’ll send someone round to check on him again this evening, then I think we could switch to checking on his progress morning and night, and I’ll drop by at lunchtimes; I’ll see you then.”</p><p> Lantis watched her leave, then turned again to watching the faint rise-and-fall of Eagle’s chest.</p><p> Time. Hikaru had given them that; time Lantis never expected to have, so why was he so impatient now? It felt ungrateful, after all she had done for them, to want Eagle awake <em>now</em>. Yet still it hurt, to watch him lying there. To think he might be doing so for years was just-</p><p> “Hey,” a soft voice called out, and he looked up to see Hikaru at the door. His expression must have shown something of what he was thinking, because the next moment she was at his side, reaching to take his other hand in both of hers. “It’s going to be alright, Lantis. It’s definitely going to be alright.”</p><p> He nodded, but slowly, and his head felt so heavy. “I know. Guru Clef tells me so, the healers tell me so, and you tell me the same.”</p><p> “…But?”</p><p> The prompt was so soft he could have ignored it; he found himself answering anyway. “I don’t want to have to wait any longer to apologise to him. For fighting against him.” He admitted, and Hikaru made a soft noise which didn’t quite turn into a word; she let go of his hand to fling her arms about his neck.</p><p> Lantis froze, before wrapping his arm about her back and pressing his head to her shoulder. It was a constant shock how she could be so – so <em>much</em>, like a force of nature distilled down. Emeraude had been small, and powerful; but she hadn’t been so <em>young</em>. Her power had soothed through the land calmly, quiet, unstoppable.</p><p> Hikaru radiated heat and emotion and love at the whole world in bright flares which coiled and shone and wrapped about people, drawing them in where she could protect them.</p><p> “I’m sorry.” He said, eyes closed. “I’m grateful for everything you have given Eagle, I just-“</p><p> “Shh.” She told him, almost fiercely. “You don’t need to apologise because you’re hurting, Lantis. You don’t.”</p><p> Hikaru was so warm; the contrast with the chill of Eagle’s hand was enough to start Lantis shaking. Or perhaps it was being given permission to <em>hurt</em>. He had spent all this time feeling as though he should be angry, or guilty. (Angry at Eagle, for doing what he had to, for using what Lantis had told him. Angry with the whole of Cephiro for existing, at times. But there was never any anger for the girls Emeraude had dragged out of their own world into Cephiro’s problems. It might have been their hands which ended Zagato’s life, but it was Emeraude’s will behind it, however much she wanted to protect him.) Anger was useful, and he knew all too well the sins he had committed by running away from his post.</p><p> Against the pain that Zagato had felt, and Emeraude – against the hurt in Eagle’s eyes when Lantis left – what right had he to feel sad himself?</p><p> He’d let himself do this only once before; lean into someone and acknowledge he was shaken, and lost. That last conversation before he left Autozam he had let Eagle hold him, the same as Hikaru was holding him now. The world hadn’t ended then. Perhaps he needed to accept it wasn’t ending now, either.</p><p> He wasn’t angry anymore. Without that, he just felt… lost.</p><p> “It’s okay.” Hikaru murmured again, and Lantis took a deep breath, let it out. Eagle was here, Cephiro was reborn, and this girl had won his trust and his loyalty with the way she saved them all. If he was lost, then this was a good place to be.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Throughout the whole of this Geo is totally asleep on a sofa on the other side of the room, avoiding having to deal with Lantis having FEELINGS while Eagle's not awake to deal with them XD</p></blockquote></div></div>
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